Digital Branch of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Oral History Program

Percy Nusunginya

Percy Nusunginya is an Iñupiaq elder from Barrow, Alaska. He was born in 1941 to Faye and Ned Nusunginya, and grew up living a traditional subsistence lifestyle where he learned to hunt and be out on the se ice at a young age. He attended primary school in Barrow and high school at Mount Edgecumbe in Sitka, Alaska. As a young man, Percy worked for the Naval Arctic Research Laboratory (NARL), including on their ice island research stations. Percy comes from a long line of successful whalers and expert hunters and is very proud of his heritage. He has continued the family tradition by whaling with his brother-in-law, Joe Panigeo, and then starting his own crew in the late 1970s. Percy has extensive knowledge of the sea ice environment and of whaling and seal hunting. Percy has a deep commitment to protecting the rights of the Iñupiat people, and for many years has been actively involved in advocating on their behalf.

Percy Nusunginya was interviewed on February 25, 2016 by Karen Brewster at the Tuzzy Consortium Library in Barrow, Alaska. Sarah Skin, Oral Historian for the North Slope Borough Iñupiat History, Language and Culture Commission (IHLC) was also present at the interview. In this first part of a two part interview, Percy talks about his family's history as whalers, his own education about sea ice and whaling, and the importance of understanding the wind, the current, and the ice conditions in order to be safe on the ice. Percy also talks about drifting out on the ice, the role of ice in whaling and choice of whale camp location, and the effect of climate change on changing ice conditions.

This is a continuation of the interview with Percy Nusunginya on February 25, 2016 by Karen Brewster at the Tuzzy Consortium Library in Barrow, Alaska. Sarah Skin, Oral Historian for the North Slope Borough Iñupiat History, Language and Culture Commission (IHLC) was also present at the interview. In this second part of a two part interview, Percy talks about different ice types, ice movement, the effect of wind and current, and the difficulty of describing the ice. He also discusses ice safety, and adapting to changing conditions and the future of whaling.